SAAB AIRCRAFT LEASING AB sold a 30-seat Saab 340A to Corporate Express Airlines of Calgary, Canada. Corporate Express, which currently operates four 19-seat Jetstream 31s, will take delivery of the newest addition to its fleet later this month. The airline provides corporate shuttle service between Calgary and Fort McMurray.
SEN. SLADE GORTON (R-Wash.) Friday had expanded his lead over Democrat contender Maria Cantwell by about 11,500 votes with a conclusion to the race expected over the weekend. Cantwell still had a chance to capture the Senate seat - with tens of thousands of ballots yet to be counted as of Friday - but Gorton's lead appears to have weakened that chance.
THE NAPLES VOTE came despite FAA's warning that it has "identified aspects of the proposed access regulations that appear to be, or have the potential to be, inconsistent with the obligation to provide reasonable access to the airport" as required under airport grant assurances (BA, Nov. 6/209). An FAA spokeswoman last week said the airport authority provided an "extensive response" to its letters and the agency was sifting through new legal and technical issues raised in that response.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's massive rulemaking imposing new ergonomics standards on U.S. businesses is an improvement over the original proposal but still is "intrusive and costly" to manage, the National Air Transportation Association said last week. OSHA published the controversial ergonomics standard Tuesday, consuming more than 600 pages of Federal Register type.
BELL Model HH-1K, TH-1F, TH-1L, UH-1A, UH-1B, UH-1E, UH-1F, UH-1H, UH-1L, and UH-1P; and Southwest Florida Aviation SW204, SW204HP, SW205, and SW205A-1 helicopters (Docket No. 2000-SW-01-AD; Amendment 39-11966; AD 2000-15-21 R1) - revises an existing airworthiness directive that requires removing and replacing certain main rotor mast assemblies. This amendment corrects a part number that was published incorrectly in the existing AD. The actions specified by this AD are intended to prevent fatigue failure of the mast and subsequent loss of control of the helicopter.
ERIC FIORE, 43, a test pilot on board the Bombardier Challenger business jet that crashed while attempting to take off from Wichita's Mid-Continent Airport Oct. 10, succumbed to his injuries Nov. 15. Fiore had been hospitalized with severe burns since the accident, which killed the other two crew members (BA, Oct. 16/180). Fiore was a former Air Force pilot. A military funeral was planned, along with a memorial service in Wichita.
RAYTHEON Beech Model 1900D airplanes (Docket No. 2000-CE-10-AD) - proposes to require rewiring the KLN-90B GPS to eliminate the possibility of inconsistent NAV "FLAG" displays. The proposed AD is the result of an instance in which the copilot's NAV "FLAG" display was based on the pilot's NAV source validity. The actions specified by the proposed AD are intended to assure that the copilot's NAV "FLAG" displays are based on the copilot's selected NAV source.
SIGNATURE FLIGHT SUPPORT officially inaugurated its upgraded $12.4 million fixed-base operation at Baltimore Washington International Airport (BWI) Thursday evening, not quite two weeks after employees moved into the new facilities. The project included a new 10,000 square-foot executive terminal, two new 20,000 square-foot hangars and a fuel farm for the mid-field cargo complex.
MIDDLE RIVER AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS'S unit based in U-Tapao, Thailand, MRSA Asia Ltd., won certification as an FAA limited airframe repair station. MRSA Asia, a subsidiary of General Electric, provides thrust reverser repair and overhaul in its 48,000-square-foot facility.
Model F.28 Mark 0070 and 0100 series airplanes (Docket No. 98-NM-122-AD) - proposes to require revising the airworthiness limitations section of the instructions for continued airworthiness to incorporate life limits for certain items and inspections to detect fatigue cracking in certain structures. This proposal is prompted by issuance of mandatory continuing airworthiness information by a foreign civil airworthiness authority.
DAN CLARK was named technical services sales manager for Elliott Aviation's facility in Minneapolis, Minn. Clark formerly was the marketing and airworthiness manager for a Minneapolis aircraft interior company.
CFE738-1-1B turbofan engines (Docket No. 2000-NE-40-AD; Amendment 39-11942; AD 2000-21-10) - requires replacing certain support assemblies. This amendment is prompted by a report of the loss of seal retention that resulted in contact between the seal face and the Stage 2 high-pressure turbine (HPT) rotor disk, and subsequent wear of the Stage 2 HPT rotor disk. That condition resulted in separation of the Stage 2 HPT wheel rim, and an uncontained failure of the Stage 2 HPT rotor wheel.
GULFSTREAM AEROSPACE named Tony Singleton general manager of the company's Brunswick, Ga. plant where he will oversee some 200 employees involved in aircraft completions and maintenance service. Singleton, who has been interim general manager for the past year, "has earned this opportunity based on his overall performance...and especially because of his performance over the past 12 months," said Larry Flynn, senior vice president. Singleton has been with Gulfstream for 16 years.
BRAZILIAN MANUFACTURER Embraer signed a cooperation agreement with the Russian TsAGI (Tsentralny Aerogidrodynamichesky Institut-Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute). Embraer has been using a TsAGI wind tunnel since June to fine-tune the ERJ 170/190 family of regional jets, along with the research center's computer-based aerodynamic and aeroelastic laboratories. The new agreement "covers the entire scope of all the work we intend to perform alongside TsAGI to fully utilize their enormous technologic capabilities," said Satoshi Yokota, Embraer's industrial vice president.
Gulfstream Aerospace is hoping to capitalize on a potentially growing Asian market by signing a memorandum of understanding with Hong Kong-based Metrojet for charter and other services. Gulfstream is leasing a Gulfstream IV to Metrojet for charter use with service expected to begin early next year. Metrojet will operate the aircraft from its base in Hong Kong and Gulf-stream will support the aircraft. Gulfstream also will use the aircraft as a demonstrator throughout Asia.
JOHN MENARD joined BAE Systems Canada as director of business development - corporate aircraft products. Menard has more than 25 years of technical and sales experience in aviation avionics and completions. He previously was sales manager of the Satcom Division at EMS and also has served as director of aircraft avionics, maintenance and completions for Innotech Aviation.
The pilot of an Aerospatiale AS-350B helicopter was killed late last month when his aircraft crashed with little warning while he was making a routine flight between oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico.
Docket No.: 29197 Section of the FAR Affected: 14 CFR 91.315 Description of Relief Sought/Disposition: To permit Stallion 51 to provide initial and recurrent training, and training under contracts with the U.S. military, in its two North American TF-51 airplanes certificated as limited category civil aircraft. Grant, Sept. 8, 2000, Exemption No. 6811A
The fate of the chairman of the Senate aviation subcommittee remained in limbo as Sen. Slade Gorton (R-Wash.) clung to a narrow lead late last week over contender Maria Cantwell (D) with hundreds of thousands of outstanding ballots remaining to be counted in the state of Washington. Gorton was one of four Senate aviation subcommittee members considered in jeopardy before Tuesday's election two of whom, Sens. Spencer Abraham (R-Mich.) and John Ashcroft (R-Mo.) - lost their bids to return.
Model CN-235, CN-235-100, and CN-235-200 series airplanes (Docket No. 2000-NM-264-AD) - proposes to require replacing the upper brackets in Frames 33, 34, and 35 with improved brackets that are more fatigue resistant and reinforcing Frame 35. This action is necessary to prevent fatigue cracking in the zone of the fittings connecting the fuselage to stiffener rods located in Frames 33, 34, and 35, which could reduce structural integrity of the airplane. This action is intended to address the identified unsafe condition. Send comments in triplicate by Nov.
WAYNE HUNDSDORFER joined Midcoast Aviation as director of corporate aviation sales. Hundsdorfer, who is based at St. Louis Downtown-Parks Airport, formerly was Midwest marketing manager for Honeywell. He also has served with Gulfstream, McDonnell Douglas Electronic Systems Company and UNC Accessory Services.
BOMBARDIER AEROSPACE delivered a high-speed de Havilland Dash 8 Q400 to Changan Airlines Limited in The People's Republic of China. Changan, which recently merged with Hainan Airlines, ordered three Q400 aircraft in April 1999 to replace its older turboprop equipment. The airline is based in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province. Bombardier also delivered the first of five CRJ200 regional jet aircraft to Shandong Airlines. Deliveries of the CRJ200s are slated to continue in 2001. Shandong is based in Ji'nan, the capital of Shandong Province.
MARK SHUFFLEBOTHAM was appointed president of Bearing Inspection's Atech Turbine Components unit. Shufflebotham has 16 years of aerospace experience and previously held management positions with Altair Avionics Corp. and Weston Aerospace.
SIKORSKY sold two S-70A Firehawk helicopters to Los Angeles County for firefighting and paramedic uses. The agreement was valued at $25 million, including the helicopters, support equipment, training, emergency medical service interiors, mission avionics, water tanks and extended landing gear. The helicopters are slated for delivery by early 2001.
